Maximum annual rent increase in the private sector
The Dutch government has introduced measures to make the housing market more accessible to starters, and middle-income buyers and renters.
The Ministry of Home Affairs proposed to set a maximum on the annual rent increase for the private sector, introduce new acquisition protection measures ‘Opkoopbescherming’, and to make the extension of temporary rental contract possible.
Set maximum annual rent increase
Before 1 July 2020, there was no cap on the annual rent increase in the private sector. As a result, landlords can ask for a 5 to 6 percent rent increase per year. Setting a maximum will prevent tenants in the private sector from being faced with unexpected rent increases. A new bill will limit the increase to a maximum inflation of +2.5%.
Acquisition protection
The government is preparing to change a bill to allow municipalities to apply acquisition protection 'Opkoopbescherming' in neighbourhoods where they see fit. This will allow for more flexibility to prevent affordable homes from being acquired by investors for rental purposes, but also to allow for more rental properties where necessary.
Long-term lease possibilities
A bill is also in the pipeline to allow for more flexibility in the extension of a temporary rental contract. A temporary rental contract can currently only be extended once. The government is looking into extending these contracts by one or two years, with a maximum extension period of three years.
Additional recent measures for starters
Two days ago, on 'Prinsjesdag', the government announced more measures to help starters and middle-income buyers/renters find affordable housing. From 2021, home buyers aged 18 to 35 will no longer pay transfer tax. This is in addition to the new cap on annual rent increase mentioned above.
Please refer to the article (in Dutch) on rijksoverheid.nl
Measures mentioned in this article refer to the private housing sector. Read about maximum rent increase for social housing in this article (in Dutch).